Game-changing innovations will fuel the modernization and industrialization of the country’s agriculture and fishery sector.

That, in a nutshell, was the message of Agriculture Secretary William Dar during a technical meeting on the Global Innovation Index (GII) in the Philippines, held on February 17, at the Philippine International Convention Center.

“Since August 2019 the Department of Agriculture (DA) has been pursuing innovative approaches across all our agri-fishery programs, making use of the advances in science and technology (S&T) and inclusive, market-oriented development (IMOD),” Dar stressed, during the event conducted by the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) and World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).

The Secretary added that the Department is focusing its efforts in empowering farmers’ cooperatives and associations (FCAs) and young agri-entrepreneurs by providing them not only appropriate innovative technologies, but also needed financial support by way of start-up capital, a fund for project expansion, mentoring, or hiring of professional managers.

“We are allotting an initial P3 billion (B) to fund various innovative agri-fishery projects and agribusiness incubation enterprises for millennials, hobbyists, FCAs, and agripreneurs,” Dar said.

The DA recently launched the P1B Kapital Access for Young Agripreneurs (KAYA) loan program to attract young Filipinos, aged 18 to 30 years old, to engage in any agri-fishery project, where they can borrow start-up capital of up to P500,000, payable in five years, with zero interest.

For micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), the Department also allotted P1B for the Agri-Negosyo loan program to enable MSMEs to scale up their current businesses, as they can borrow up to P15 million (M), payable in five years, with zero interest.

Another P500M will be allocated for the Agricultural Technology Business Incubation (ATBI) program that will provide grants to Filipino millennials and agripreneurs to translate their innovative ideas into farm and fishery products.

Finally, the DA is setting aside another P500M for the Inclusive Agribusiness (IA) program aimed at capacitating and empowering FCAs, where they can avail of a grant for institution-building and hire professional managers who will help them run their enterprise.

“We will engage the state universities and colleges (SUCs), government agencies, and business development services to mentor the beneficiaries of the KAYA, Agri Negosyo, ATBI, and IA programs,” Dar said.

Further, on attracting more Filipino youngsters to engage in agriculture, Secretary Dar said the DA will implement a management internship program, where it will hire top graduates– particularly those with Latin honors–from SUCs and private academic institutions to work at any of the DA Family agencies that fit their field of interest and academic attainment.

The DA’s Agricultural Training Institute (ATI) is establishing a Young Farmers’ Academy that integrates under one roof all their programs and initiatives for the youth.

Aside from Secretary Dar, the other resource persons at the DOST-WIPO technical meeting were: DOST Secretary Fortunato De La Peña; DTI Secretary Ramon Lopez; Dr. Sacha Wunsch-Vincent of WIPO and GII; Andrew Michael Ong, WIPO director for Asia and the Pacific; NEDA Director Richard Emerson Ballester; and CHED Director Nelson Cainghog. Ambassador Evan Garcia of the Philippine Mission to the UN and other international organizations served as moderator of the event, attended by about 100 Filipino and foreign technocrats. ###

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Reference:

Noel Ocampo Reyes
DA Spokesperson & ASec for Comms and Media Affairs
CP: 09204889686 or 09566694611
Phone: 89298183